Chapter 207: Even if Naoki suddenly becomes a manga artist, I won't be surprised~

Tokyo's livehouses, like dance halls, are scattered in places where young people gather. Shizhi Araki familiarly took Naoki Nagayama into a place that was not yet open for business.

"Naoki-san, this is where I worked before."

The layout of the livehouse is relatively simple. In the middle of the venue is a large stage, professional musical instruments and audio equipment, and

If you added some booths and a bar counter, it wouldn't be any different from a small dance hall. However, a livehouse is still purer; people come here mostly to appreciate the music. The distance between the performers and the audience here is especially close, making it very easy to create an excellent performance effect.

"Mochi-san has also performed on a stage like this, right?" Naoki Nagayama felt a stir in his heart when he saw the nostalgic look on Tomochi Araki's face.

"Yes, I did come here when I was young. The decor was much simpler back then." Tomochi Araki smiled a bit shyly. "I was very, very green back then, and my performance was quite immature. Thinking about it now, it was about the same as what's inside, hahaha."

"Haha, don't say that. Everyone has a time when they are young and reckless. That is youth!" Naoki Nagayama patted Tomochi Araki on the shoulder.

This was originally a very normal gesture, but when done by Naoki Nagayama, it had an indescribable sense of incongruity.

"Yeah, a youth that has passed."

After Tomochi Araki finished this sentence, he suddenly discovered the source of the incongruity: "I say, Naoki-san, what kind of old-fashioned tone are you putting on! You're only 20 years old!"

"Ah, this..." Naoki Nagayama was speechless for a moment. In terms of mental age, he was the same as a middle-aged man pushing forty like Tomochi Araki. "Hahaha, I just felt so moved by Mochi-san's sentiment that I echoed it unconsciously."

Tomochi Araki shook his head and said to Naoki Nagayama, "Alright, Naoki-san, let's go to the backstage and take a look."

Walking from the side of the stage to the backstage, there were already three ruffian-looking young men preparing in the dressing room.

"Yoshiyaka, Yoshizumi, Hitotaka, come over here for a second. This is the music producer, Naoki Nagayama." Tomochi Araki greeted them first, then introduced them to Naoki Nagayama. "Naoki-san, these three are the band members: drummer Yoshiyaka Nitta, guitarist Yoshizumi Mizutani, and lead singer and bassist Hitotaka Morishita."

Yoshiyaka, Yoshizumi, Hitotaka... These names are so well-chosen. Why would such kind-hearted band members dress up like delinquent thugs?

"Hi, nice to meet you, please take care of us!" x4. After the standard bowing and greeting process was finished, Naoki Nagayama finally brought up the purpose of this visit.

"Minna-san, Mochi-san should have already told you the reason for meeting you all this time. It's because I have a record that needs a rap segment, and I'm looking for a singer." Naoki Nagayama smiled. "If possible, I'd also like to find some backup talent for the agency."

"Hi, we understand!" Hitotaka Morishita nodded. "We have confidence in both rapping and performing."

After offering a few words of encouragement, Naoki Nagayama and Tomochi Araki walked out of the backstage, waiting to see the band's performance during the show.

"Naoki-san, how do you feel about this group?" Tomochi Araki's tone carried a hint of concern; these were all people he had managed before.

"We're just chatting for now; I still need to see their performance ability." Naoki Nagayama didn't rush to a conclusion. Simple rapping was certainly no problem, but to sign them—this was only the first meeting, after all.

Besides, Naoki Nagayama hadn't watched a livehouse performance in a long time, and he planned to have a good experience today.

Junko Ito, who finally had some time off, returned to the GG Agency's staff dormitory to rest.

As one of the few artists in the agency, Otomo Yoshimura very generously rented a two-story apartment in Nakano as a staff dormitory, where Junko Ito and the Wild Cat sisters all lived.

At this time, the Wild Cat sisters, who also had no bookings, were watching television in the living room.

"Junko-chan, back so early today?" Ayano Katagiri, who was eating potato chips, greeted her happily after seeing Junko Ito return. "Do you want some chips?"

"Better not, I'll get fat." As someone prone to gaining weight, Junko Ito was still very strict about her diet management. Being naturally large-boned, if she got even a little bit fat, she would look very bulky...

"So envious, Ayano-chan doesn't get fat no matter how much she eats..."

Ayano Katagiri, who used to be the dance lead, was just the opposite; she had a constitution that didn't gain weight no matter what she ate.

Mikina Ono poured a cup of tea: "Junko-chan, no more activities today?"

Junko Ito sprawled on the sofa like a salted fish: "Finally able to rest for a bit. I'm so envious of the days spent lying at home."

As an idol with a top-ten single on the charts, Junko Ito could now be said to be at the forefront of her peers, having gained a certain level of fame and even the potential to chase after top-tier idol status in the future.

"It's Junko-san who is enviable." Ayano Katagiri wrapped one arm around the youngest girl. "Doesn't a life with daily work demands just prove that your popularity is rising?"

"Yeah, by comparison, we stay in the dormitory every day, and our bodies are almost molding..." Hisa Akiyama stretched, her graceful figure fully visible.

The other three couldn't help but sneak a glance, then secretly spat in disdain.

Unlike her role as the sexy lead, Hisa Akiyama was actually a carefree person in private.

"Aren't you sisters going to be in a movie again soon?" Junko Ito asked. "I heard before that you were going to let me play the daughter, but then you didn't want to..."

"That's because you have a new song to promote." Mikina Ono knew more about the company's affairs. "It's said they are looking for a baby-faced artist to play the role."

"Eh? Isn't it choosing one from among you?"

"None of us are suitable." Ayano Katagiri curled her lips. "They said we are too old, even though we are only in our early 20s..."

"Give it a rest, you're already 25! How can you play a 15-year-old girl?" Hisa Akiyama interjected. "We're all at the age to get married!"

"You're the one who's about to get married!" Ayano Katagiri clawed her way over to tickle her. For a moment, the staff dormitory became rowdy, and the whole room was filled with the laughter of young girls.

After finally calming down, Junko Ito asked, "Ano, does the agency have no plans for you sisters' future careers?"

The other three didn't know what to say for a moment: "Anyway, it's just spinning around in various movies, TV dramas, and variety shows filmed by the company. Since the Wild Cat group disbanded, there haven't been any special arrangements."

Mikina Ono sighed: "It's very likely we'll be like other washed-up artists, slowly fading out of the entertainment industry."

"How can that be... Isn't Naoki-san very talented? He will definitely find a new direction for everyone!" Junko Ito had a mysterious confidence in Naoki Nagayama.

"Haha, that's true. It was Naoki-san who discovered the Wild Cat group in the first place." Hisa Akiyama still remembered the excitement of being chosen as the sexy lead.

"I have always believed in Naoki-san." Ayano Katagiri started eating potato chips again, which made her words lack a bit of sincerity.

Otomo Yoshimura was at the studio contacting locations and other matters for "Hachiko Monogatari" when Masami Inada suddenly knocked on the door and entered the office.

"Otomo-san, the manga artist Tsukasa Hojo, whom you've been asking me to contact, has finally responded."

"Is that so? Finally a response. Is a manga artist really that hard to contact?" Otomo Yoshimura scratched his head.

"Perhaps only he is relatively difficult to contact..." Masami Inada said. "He actually only uses letters and such..."

Otomo Yoshimura put down the materials and instructed Masami Inada, "Inada-kun, let's set a time to meet as soon as possible. By the way, has the copyright investigation for 'Cat's Eye' been completed?"

"Hi, it's already finished."

"Naoki-san has been optimistic about this manga since the end of last year and has been urging me to negotiate the copyright..." Otomo Yoshimura pondered for a while. "Inada-kun, you go and sound him out for me first. If we want to buy the TV adaptation rights, roughly how much would it cost?"

"Otomo-san, this manga has only just started serialization, right? We don't even know if it will become popular. Isn't it too fast to say we want to buy the TV adaptation rights directly?"

"What do you know? If you wait until a manga becomes popular, you might not be able to buy it then!" Otomo Yoshimura scolded. "People with the ability to discover the potential of a work in advance are rare, and those who can make up their minds are even rarer! Without a doubt, Naoki-san is such a person."

Masami Inada nodded in agreement: "Hi, I'll go negotiate right away."

After Masami Inada walked out, Shuichi Yin Tang, who was on the side, asked curiously,

"Otomo-san, is Naoki-san planning to remake 'Cat's Eye'?"

"It seems he has this idea, but it's not certain." Otomo Yoshimura said. "I was asking Naoki-san how the Wild Cat sisters should be arranged, and Naoki-san suddenly brought up this manga."

"At that time, 'Cat's Eye' hadn't even started serialization yet."

Shuichi Yin Tang was very surprised: "If that's the case, did Naoki-san actually know the information about the manga's serialization in advance? How is that possible!"

Otomo Yoshimura was very calm: "Yin Tang-san, perhaps Naoki-san also has friends in the circle of manga creators."

He then continued: "To be honest, Naoki-san is a composer, lyricist, screenwriter, and children's literature writer. If one day Naoki-san suddenly becomes a manga artist, I wouldn't be surprised at all."

Shuichi Yin Tang smiled upon hearing this: "Yeah, maybe one day Naoki-san will bring a manga and say to you, 'Otomo-san, this is a manga I drew. Please take a look and see if you can find a publisher to publish it.'"

"Hahaha, that's really possible!"

Otomo Yoshimura remembered how Naoki Nagayama brought "Summer's Garden" over before.

"By the way, did Naoki-san say he was writing another one?"

"Yes, it seems he's been writing since the beginning of the year. The gaunt look he had before was probably because he was immersed in creation." Shuichi Yin Tang thought of Naoki Nagayama's previous appearance.

"I really want to know what kind of work it will be."

"Yeah..."

After chatting about side topics for a while, the two returned to business.

"By the way, Yin Tang-san, regarding what we said before about finding a baby-faced actor, have you found one?"

"Baby-faced actor, I already have a few choices, and some even have connections to idols."

"Is that so?"

The passionate rhythm and enthusiastic singing made the adrenaline of the audience in the livehouse soar. Except for confirming their seats at the beginning, the seats were now completely useless. Everyone stood up, twisting their bodies to the rhythm.

Naoki Nagayama squeezed into a crowd of strangers, feeling as if he had come to a disco again. But this time, there were no colorful neon lights or alcohol, and the people on the dance floor were all there for the music.

In fact, the band's singing and songs were quite average, but as a rock band, passion is more important, and in this regard, the few of them did a good job.

On the way back, Tomochi Araki was a bit uneasy. The performance was only half over when Naoki Nagayama told him they were leaving. He thought he was dissatisfied with the band.

"Naoki-san, are you not very satisfied with the band members?"

Naoki Nagayama shook his head: "It's not that I'm dissatisfied. As an underground band, their performance can already be said to be very excellent."

"Then, why leave halfway?"

That's because I have to go back to write the manuscript!

The task of "Love Letter" wasn't finished, and Naoki Nagayama couldn't completely relax. After listening for a while, he knew he couldn't integrate into the atmosphere of the scene at all, so he could only drag Tomochi Araki out.

But he couldn't say that to Tomochi Araki, so he could only say something slightly perfunctory:

"I've heard what I needed to hear, but there are other aspects that need to be examined. I will consider it further later."

"Hi, I understand." Tomochi Araki didn't continue to ask. He had done what he could, and now it depended on whether his boss liked them.

When they arrived at Takadanobaba, they happened to run into Naoya Sakata leading a group of workers to dismantle the remaining parts of the walls and such.

"Naoya-san, how is the demolition going? How long is it expected to take to finally complete?"

"This, Naoki-san, the early demolition work is going very smoothly. According to the construction progress, it can be fully completed in early June."

"So that's how it is." Naoki Nagayama nodded, then asked again, "Naoya-san, how is Guishi-san's design drawing coming along?"

"Ah, Master is still pondering the final design style recently. He even went to the temple on the mountain yesterday to find inspiration."

A temple? Could it be that he wants to build that kind of tea house with a special Zen feel?

Naoki Nagayama thought about it. If people who drank tea in the tea room in the future felt as if they had been baptized by the Buddha, that would seem pretty good...

"Haha, Guishi-san is really serious."

Looking at the disco that had become a construction site, he patted Naoya Sakata on the shoulder. "Alright, then I'll trouble you during this time, Naoya-san."

"Hi, this is what I should do!"

Eh, wait, why do I feel like I really like patting people on the shoulder now? Could it be that the pressure is too great?

Naoki Nagayama switched to his convertible sports car, deciding to return to Sanyingyuan without a moment's delay. He had to finish the task at hand first; otherwise, he really couldn't stand the constant pressure.